Guernsey - St Peters Port
St Peter Port is the oldest community in the Channel Islands, a fact reflected by the many splendid Georgian and Regency residences so much in evidence here. These delightful and picturesque buildings, hugging the hillsides that surround the harbour, obscure much earlier layers of settlement that stretch back at least to the 13th century. The elegant architecture and well-preserved history of St Peter Port, reminds many visitors of the timeless charm and quiet neatness often found in coastal townships on the Mediterranean. A continental air of 'Frenchness' permeates much of the town, providing an added cosmopolitan glamour to Guernsey's delightful capital.
The earliest history of St Peter Port is mostly lost in the mists of time, although the remains of a sunken Roman ship discovered on the harbour seabed in 1982, would suggest ancient visitors from the earliest centuries AD. The Town Church predates the Norman Invasion of Britain, existing as early as 1048; similarly, the harbour is first referred to in 1060 in an ancient document. After King John (1199-1216) lost Normandy in 1204, the construction of Castle Cornet began in 1206, an offshore defensive fortress of considerable importance to the early development of St Peter Port. King Edward I (1272-1307) was responsible for a new pier built between town and castle in 1275, but the French managed to destroy this before the turn of the century.
St Peter Port, as a medieval town, appears to have flourished, this was due in no small part to its location as a mid-channel haven and sea port; in 1329, no fewer than 487 foreign vessels are recorded as having berthed in the town's harbour. The main industry here during the Middle Ages, between the 12th and the 16th centuries, was fishing.
As with St Helier on Jersey, St Peter Port grew in wealth and size through the late 18th century thanks to the practice of 'privateering'. A private merchant ship was licensed to act as a man-of-war by the English Crown, with a 'letter of marque' permitting it to attack enemy trading ships and confiscate their cargo. This form of legalised piracy proved very successful, in 1778 alone local privateers sailing out of St Peter Port plundered booty to the value of £343,500. After the defeat of Napoleon at Waterloo in 1815, peace was restored with France and privateering ceased; however, by this time the leading island families had grown extremely wealthy from looting and smuggling.
With the advent of the 19th century St Peter Port witnessed an influx of new residents with the subsequent demand for additional housing. This heralded a golden age of building in the town, a period when many fine Georgian and Regency properties were constructed at the expense of older poorly built medieval residences. Among the grander buildings to arise from the medieval ashes are the Constable's Offices (1787); La Parte (1801); the Church of St James the Less (1818); Bonamy House (1820); Elizabeth College (1826) and Lurkis House (1840).
The Parish Church of St Peter Port, also called 'the cathedral of the Islands', was first referred to in a charter of 1048, when it passed to the Benedictine Abbey of Marmoutier, near Tours.With the Dissolution of the Monasteries (1536-9), the church came under the patronage of the English Crown. Built of granite the Town Church, as it is often called, also originally served as a fortress; the most ancient parts of the existing building are the 13th century nave and the 14th century choir. The present steeple was added in 1721 and extensive restoration undertaken between 1822-26.
The Market Halls, located at the back of the church, are all more than a century old, and the original Market Hall, with Assembly Rooms above, was built in 1780 during the period of new found wealth. The French Halles, a market hall from 1782, is next to the Guille-Alles Public Library, formerly the Assembly Rooms, where John Wesley preached in 1787. The Priauix Library and Candie Gardens were given to the people of Guernsey in 1887 by Oswald Priauix; the library holds some 25000 volumes dating back to the 15th century. Beauregard Tower, built in 1357 by Edward III (1327-77), stood on the site of present-day St Barnabas' Church.
At the Royal Court House, visitors have access to the Greffe, which houses all charters granted to Guernsey since 1394. The award winning Guernsey Museum & Art Gallery, in Candie Gardens, houses past treasures, illustrates Guernsey history and introduces the artistic outpourings of those connected to the island by birth and association. The famous La Vallette Underground Military Museum comprises a network of tunnels built by slave labour during the Nazi Occupation. The tunnels were constructed to necessitate refuelling of U-boats.